A Cold Day in Nerima
by Mirai Trunks
Summary: A mysterious ninja with an equally mysterious past happens upon Ranma, who as usual forgot what he did... * COMPLETED *
1. Chapter One - A run in with the undead n...

Ryoga chased Ranma through the open market. Flipping over a vendor's cart, Ranma made a face at his opponent. Ryoga snarled and flung his umbrella full-strength at the young man. Ranma cartwheeled, kicking the umbrella in the process. He landed in a battle pose. Gesturing forward with his right index finger, Ranma smirked.   
  
"You're _mine_ Ranma Saotome!" Ryoga charged forward. Ranma waited patiently for the umbrella to land hard on his rival's skull. Out of nowhere, a young man dressed in ninja garb flew through the air. His fingers skimmed over the side of the air-born umbrella. Shattering into thousands of pieces, Ryoga's chosen weapon slammed onto his head.  
  
"What the hell…" Ranma sat on his haunches. He picked up a fragment of the former umbrella. It was cold and clear. Looking up, he saw the back of the blue and black outfit the strange guy wore as he quickly bounded across the marketplace. Ryoga lay shivering on the ground nearby, covered in shards of ice. A dealer's booth unexpectedly exploded, showering the vicinity with splinters. Another young man, apparently a little older than Ranma, stood fuming in the place where the stall had been. Ranma stood up and flung the scrap of ice down. "What's your problem, buddy?!" Without a word, the stranger, who also dressed in ninja garb, but noticeably yellow in color turned his head and glared at Ranma. Ranma blinked and he was gone. Out of the corner of his eye, Ranma noticed the black and yellow foot soaring at his head. The ninja landed the blow to the side of his head, which spun Ranma round before he crashed to the ground in a heap. The man took off, disappearing and reappearing as he went.   
  
"C-c-c-old…" Ryoga sat up, and his teeth chattered.   
  
"Whoa…." Ranma was at a loss for words, he had never seen anyone that powerful before.   
  


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  


  
Later that day at the Tendo dojo, Kasumi Tendo was outside, feeding the fish in the pond. A gloved hand cover her mouth, the other produced a small, blue blade. It wavered above her throat.   
  
"Take me inside," her captor said in a low, determined voice.   
  
_Oh my! This can't be good_, Kasumi thought to herself. She slowly edged forward toward the house. Carefully, she opened the door with a creak, and they entered the kitchen. Ranma jumped from his seat, as did Akane.   
  
"You!" Ranma barked, as he pointed his finger at Kasumi's assailant.  
  
"Release my sister!" Akane clenched her hands into fists. He let go of Kasumi and shoved her forward. He crushed the ice blade in his hand.   
  
"What do you want ninja-boy?" Ranma's eyes were fixed intently upon the brown eyes of the stranger.   
  
"Ranma Saotome," he began.   
  
"Huh!?" Akane and Ranma said simultaneously.   
  
"You are responsible for this," the young man hissed.  
  
"What now, Ranma?"   
  
"I-I dunno, really!"   
  
"Like I haven't heard that one before," she crossed her arms over her chest. Kasumi tiptoed behind her sister and future brother-in-law.  
  
"Maybe this will help," the ninja's hands hovered over his mask, then reached under his chin. He removed the cowl and mouth cover. He was handsome, as Akane noticed, with gaunt features, and jet-black hair combed back except for a few strands that fell forward to his eyes. The most noticeable feature was a long red-pink scar running down from above his right eyebrow to the top of his right cheekbone.  
  
"Nope, not at all," Ranma broke the dramatic silence. The other man sighed in annoyance.   
  
"Does the word 'China' ring a bell?" Ranma's eyes opened wide.  
  
"You don't mean…"  
  
"Yes."  
  
"You're related to that Jusenkyo guide?" The other guy fell over in disbelief.   
  
"No, you imbecile!" He gritted his teeth. "Maybe you'll understand better when she gets here," he gestured toward the front door.  
  
"Wha?" Ranma was puzzled.  
  
"You're worse than I thought, Ranma," Akane scoffed. The door opened and Ukyo Kuonji walked in. She caught sight of the ninja and abruptly dropped the package of food she had in her arms.   
  
"Sub-Zero!?!?"  
  
* More to come! *  
  



	2. Chapter Two - Sub-Zero's story

"S-Sub-Zero?!?!" A startled Ukyo uttered again.  
  
"It is I, my love."  
  
"What the hell is going on?" Ranma put his hands on his hips. Slowly, Ukyo moved into the kitchen where the others were.   
  
"Is it really you?" She walked over to him and stared into his eyes.  
  
"Yes, Ukyo," the ninja smiled a little. "I've been in the depths of despair since you left, every day I hoped that you would return." He looked down at his feet. "I was hoping you'd come back to me and not follow _him_," Sub-Zero jabbed a finger toward Ranma.  
  
"How sweet," Akane cooed.  
  
"Um, sorry to break up the tender moment, but what do I have do with all this?" Ranma gestured wildly at the ninja.   
  
"Have you not been listening to what he said?!?" Akane became furious with her fiancé.   
  
"It's okay, I'll explain it to him, uh…" Sub-Zero was puzzled.  
  
"Akane. Akane Tendo."   
  
"Akane, it's a pleasure to meet you, I'm Sub-Zero," his gloved hand shook hers.  
  
"Enough with the pleasantries and on with the story, iceman," Ranma cocked an eyebrow.  
  
"Fine," he said in an agitated manner. He composed himself and continued, "A long time ago, in China…"   
  
A young boy wearing a dark blue Chinese style shirt with black pants, and blue wrist wraps, stands opposite a young Ukyo in a small forest. They charge at each other and begin to spar. They go at it for a few minutes, equally matched.   
  
"Ukyo Kuonji and I were the best of friends, we hung out together constantly in our hometown, as best friends do," he paused for a moment. "Then you came along."  
  
Chibi Ranma jumps between the two, inadvertently kicking Sub-Zero into the nearby bushes. He introduces himself to Ukyo, who in turn acquaints herself with the boy. They walk off together, as Sub-Zero watches. He shakes his fist at Ranma and makes an attempt to get up and follow them. Genma tromps through the forest in pursuit of his son and steps on the youth's head. Sub-Zero wails in despair as they disappear into the sunset.   
  
"I never saw her again. Of course, I had always known she was a girl, despite her best attempts to cover the truth, unlike other people," he glared at Ranma. "I had sworn to her, before you showed up, that she would one day be my bride. Ukyo agreed to the pledge. So, you can see why I am a little upset with you, Saotome."   
  
"That still doesn't explain why you're in that getup."   
  
"Will you _be quiet_ for one minute!?!?, I'm getting to that!" The ninja snarled. "Anyway," he continued, in a normal tone. "After that initial meeting, Saotome and his father stole Ukyo's father's okonomiyaki cart and left town. She followed them. Of course, no one cared to tell me about the whole thing and I found out several weeks after they left. I searched for them for a full month,"  
  
The young Sub-Zero wanders through the woods calling 'Ukyo'.  
  
"I was forced to give up by my parents to go back to school. However, I ran away and followed in the footsteps of my older brother. I soon joined the ranks of the Lin Kuei ninja clan. I remained there for several years. During the course of a battle with a rival clan from Japan called the Shirai Ryu…"  
  
Thousands of differently colored ninjas fight each other in a rocky valley. A yellow colored ninja attacks Sub-Zero from behind. He pitches him forward with a blow to the back of the neck. Sub-Zero collapses to the ground.   
  
"Another helpless Lin Kuei dies by my hands," Scorpion said, ready to make the kill.   
  
"Fortunately, I had recently began to master my ice abilities…"  
  
Ready to break his neck, Scorpion lifts Sub-Zero by the head. Thinking quickly, the doomed ninja fires an ice blast into the face of his would-be murderer. Scorpion let go with a wordless howl as his head freezes over into a block of ice. Sub-Zero rolls to a crouching position. With tremendous force, he leaps into the air and roundhouses his opponent's face. The attack breaks Scorpion's frozen cranium into thousands of small pieces. The defeated warrior slumps to his knees and then thumps to the pebble-strewn ground.   
  
"Since that moment, I have been hounded by him, in his quest for revenge. Unfortunately for me, my brother had also killed Scorpion, who in turn, came back and murdered him, or so we think. Scorpion was resurrected by a higher power we don't quite understand, and now walks the earth as a living ghost," he turned to Ranma. "It was pure coincidence that I ran into you and that other guy today when I was running from him. Oh, are you all right? I didn't mean to hurt you earlier if I did," Sub-Zero glanced at Kasumi.  
  
"No harm done," she smiled. "I'm going to go get started on dinner," she went over to the fridge.  
  
"It feels so weird to have you back Zero," Ukyo mentioned.   
  
"I'm hoping that's a good thing, dearest Ukyo," he grinned faintly. The door leading outside was suddenly blown off its hinges, and it crashed to the ground.  
  
"**Prepare to die!**" Scorpion bellowed from the doorway.   
  
  
  
  
  



	3. Chapter Three - Scorpion strikes back

Scorpion stepped forward on the broken door. The dead ninja's clouded white eyes flitted back and forth between his targets. Sub-Zero gritted his teeth and shoved Ukyo behind him. Ranma tried to do the same but Akane held her ground at his side. In an attempt to get out of harm's way, Kasumi crept backward into a corner. Scorpion let out an inhuman snarl and leapt at the ice-warrior.   
  
With both hands, he slammed into Sub-Zero's chest then rotated mid-air to land a kick to the side of Ranma's neck, where it met the shoulder. It sent the young man spinning onto the kitchen table, which buckled when he landed on it. Akane made her attack as Sub-Zero flipped onto his feet. The yellow-clad demon latched onto her arm when she punched forward. He twisted it hard, then planted a booted foot between her breasts. The blow sent her through the wall with a crash.   
  
Ranma rolled over and got to his feet. The two assassins were going back and forth, trading blows across the room. Sub-Zero performed a cartwheel to dodge a downward stomp. Ranma rolled to a crouching position and kicked Scorpion in the ribs. Ukyo whipped out several spatulas and flung them at their enemy. She neatly pinned him to the wall.   
  
"No, wait!" Sub-Zero yelled as Ranma charged forward. In the blink of an eye, Scorpion vanished then reappeared behind Ranma. He hammered Ranma through the wall with a double-fisted blow. Scorpion quickly turned to glare at Ukyo. He raised his open palm in her direction.   
  
"**Get over here**!" The specter thundered. A black, segmented cord with a grotesque snake head shot out of his palm, aiming toward the middle of her chest. Sub-Zero grabbed a nearby dish and flung it toward Ukyo. The serpent hit the plate and bounced upward. It let out a high-pitched squeal when it became imbedded in the ceiling with a burst of black blood. Scorpion growled and pulled back on the remainder of the cord.   
  
Akane came back into the kitchen through the hole she had created in the wall. The phantom flicked his wrist. The cord whipped Akane from left shoulder to right hip. It ripped through her shirt and left a red wound on the now exposed flesh. Scorpion side-kicked Sub-Zero below the chin then backhanded Ukyo. They both tumbled to the floor. Ranma got the jump on the ninja and held his arms behind him. Scorpion pushed off the ground, flipped a complete 360° and drop kicked him in the chest. Ranma still held him by the wrists and Scorpion rolled forward, landing his feet in Ranma's abdomen. Ranma flipped several times and landed in a heap next to Akane.   
  
Scorpion maintained a battle position and scanned his four opponents. At that very moment, Ryoga Hibiki entered the front door. Scorpion laughed ghoulishly as the young man made his way down the hall toward the kitchen. When the door opened, he propelled his cable at him. It wrapped around his throat and the specter reeled him in. He abruptly grabbed Ryoga by the throat with his left hand and held him off the ground.   
  
"Surrender or the boy **dies**!" Scorpion announced. Ryoga grasped the ninja's wrist with both hands, but was unable to loosen the vice grip the slightest bit. His feet dangled a foot off the ground.   
  
"You won't get away with this, Scorpion. You are more a coward than ever to hide behind a hostage in the midst of combat!" Sub-Zero answered in a resolute tone.  
  
"Put Ryoga down," Ukyo hissed. Ryoga gasped several times and let go of the ninja's arm, he had a determined look on his face.  
  
"Do you agree to the bargain, or shall I kill this pathetic mortal?" He shook Ryoga for emphasis. Ryoga closed his eyes and furrowed his brow. "Well?"   
  
"HOKODEN!" Ryoga shot the energy burst point-blank into the ninja's torso. Scorpion lost his grip and smashed into the wall behind him. Quickly, Ryoga joined the others, who were grouped several feet away from the startled ninja. Scorpion regained his footing and cocked his head to one side, then the other. His eyes glowed a bright orange.   
  
"Oh no…" Sub-Zero remarked softly. "Everyone, out of the kitchen. NOW!" Scorpion pulled off his mask, revealing a skull. The entire group let out a collective gasp with the exception of the ice ninja. The orange glow in the eyeless sockets grew brighter, then flickered blood red. Sub-Zero grabbed Kasumi around the waist and leapt through the hole in the wall that had been created by Akane. Ryoga and Ukyo went next, then Ranma and Akane. Scorpion opened his mouth and belched a long stream of flames through the kitchen. The blast continued through the hole in the wall, toward Sub-Zero and the others.   
  
As it was about to reach them, the flames stopped short and vanished in a small puff of smoke. A figure moved toward the opening in the wall. The smoke that filled the kitchen hid its identity. The ninja stepped out of the smoke screen and into the open air of the courtyard.  
  
"No way…" Sub-Zero began.  
  
  



	4. Chapter Four - The end?

"I-impossible…" Sub-Zero stammered.   
  
"Go." The ninja commanded.   
  
"What the?" Akane commented. The masked ninja's outfit was colored blue like Sub-Zero's. He was slightly taller and appeared older, probably into his mid-twenties.  
  
"This is between me and Scorpion, now. Go."   
  
"I'm not going to leave you… brother," Sub-Zero stood his ground. The others gasped in unison.   
  
"B-brother?" Ranma blurted out.   
  
"This is not a game, brother, go before someone unnecessarily gets killed." A black-gloved hand with a yellow gauntlet grabbed the elder Sub-Zero by the throat and pulled him inside.   
  
"No!" Sub-Zero shouted out and raced into the kitchen. Ranma looked at Ryoga. With a wordless agreement, they followed the ice-ninja.   
  
"Ranma!"  
  
"Ryoga!"   
  
Inside the charred kitchen, Scorpion, who remained unmasked, side-kicked the younger Sub-Zero on the chin. He flew backward into Ranma and Ryoga. Scorpion released the elder assassin and struck him with an open palm blow to the chest. The elder Sub-Zero stumbled backward. He regained his balance in time to see the undead ninja leap at him. Scorpion twisted mid-air and kicked forward with his right leg. Sub-Zero caught it in his grasp, but Scorpion bent his left ankle and hooked the back of his neck, sending Sub-Zero to the floor. Ryoga flipped to his feet and attacked the yellow-clad warrior. Scorpion easily blocked each blow, elbowed the youth across the jaw, and then gave him an uppercut, sending him sprawling. Scorpion performed a low roundhouse to trip Ranma then kicked him on the side of the face. The demon hissed and backhanded the younger ice-ninja off his feet.   
  
Outside in the courtyard, Ukyo and Akane listened to the sounds of the battle within. Ryoga was suddenly sent to through the window. Shattered glass lay around his unconscious form and he bled from several cuts. They ran over and dragged him away from the fray.  
  
Meanwhile, inside the house, Scorpion was going back and forth, trading blows with both Sub-Zeroes at the same time. Ranma leaned against a wall, breathing hard. He was amazed how the specter easily matched the brothers. He had never seen anyone this powerful… dead or alive. Scorpion's fleshless face snarled as the ice-ninjas began to overcome him. They moved as one, initiating an attack, then blocking the return blows from the other assassin. Scorpion jumped into the air and disappeared into the wall behind him.   
  
"Ranma, watch out!" The younger Sub-Zero yelled in warning. Scorpion's booted foot kicked Ranma at the base of the spine through the wall, sending the youth to his knees with a cry. He fully emerged from the partition and planted a second kick in the center of Ranma' back. Ranma flipped several times and landed at the feet of the brothers. He tried to sit up, but the pain in his back wouldn't allow it. The elder ice ninja looked briefly at his sibling. Sub-Zero understood his older brother and they established a mental link, a unique talent taught among the Lin Kuei.   
  
_I have a plan_, his brother thought.  
  
_I'm all ears, we can't seem to exhaust him._  
  
_That's because we **can't**. However, _he looked at their adversary_. This **will **work. Do you recall the training you endured to perfect your ice abilities?_  
_  
Yeah, it's still fresh in my memory._  
  
_Good, I'm going to give you a quick lesson that they didn't instruct you. When you gather the moisture for your ice-blast, concentrate intently upon its shape. Don't create a regular ball as you were taught, form a mental image of a spike, a stalagmite or stalactite is an ideal image. When the opportunity arises, kill him with it, don't worry about me._  
  
_But-  
_  
_Not buts. Being dead has taught me a thing or too,_ his brother's eyes seemed to smile. Confident in the plan, they broke the mental link and turned back to Scorpion. The eyeless sockets of the skull stared into them. Scorpion growled in a low tone. His eyes flashed bright orange again. Sub-Zero began gathering moisture. His brother stepped forward.   
  
_What is he doing? Trying to get himself killed a second time?_ Sub-Zero thought. He closed his eyes and focused on a picture of a stalagmite. The younger ice-ninja could feel it taking shape between his cupped hands. Scorpion's eyes flickered brighter. The spike had formed, and was now increasing in size. The demon's eyes turned blood red. The spike wasn't completed.  
  
_CONCENTRATE_, his brother said mentally. Scorpion let loose a flow of flames. The elder Sub-Zero dived into them.   
  
"NO!" Ranma shouted.   
  
The elder ice-ninja reappeared behind Scorpion and grabbed the back of his skull. He craned Scorpion's neck backward and pushed forward on his spine with his other fist.   
  
"If you so much as _think _to teleport, I'm snapping your head off before your body even begins to initiate the maneuver," he whispered to the demon, pulling back on his cranium to create a slight cracking sound. Suddenly, Sub-Zero hurled the ice spike forward. It flew across the room and plunged into Scorpion's torso. The elder Sub-Zero held him outward, to avoid the piercing end of the spike. He quickly let go and grabbed Ranma by the waist. "Out of the kitchen, NOW!" The two brothers sailed outside to where the others were.   
  
"Everybody, get down!" Sub-Zero yelled. The demon ninja howled one last time and exploded in a hail of black ash. "Fatality," he said softly. Akane tended to the injured Ranma. Sub-Zero turned to Ukyo. "Hey."  
  
"Hi."  
  
"You seem… happy here."  
  
"Yeah," she looked down.  
  
"Perhaps it would be better if I rescind the pledge of marriage," he smiled weakly. "It's obvious neither one of us is ready for such a union."   
  
"I guess so. What'll you do now, Zero, go back with your brother to China?" Ukyo inquired.  
  
"Wait a second," he whirled around, his brother was gone. Sub-Zero turned back to Ukyo. "It seems I have something to do after all. I wish you the best with your future," he kissed her. She enjoyed the moment and did not resist. They parted. Sub-Zero replaced his mask, nodded toward his love, and headed off into the city after his sibling. Ukyo sighed as she watched him disappear into the sunset  
  
  



End file.
